New York: Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen has described the President as a "racist", a "conman" and a "cheat" who had advance knowledge of WikiLeaks' plans to release a trove of damaging emails about Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election.

In a much-anticipated appearance before the US House of Representatives Oversight Committee, Cohen sought to embarrass Trump by detailing the President's attempts to inflate his wealth, dodge the Vietnam War draft and prevent the release of his high school test results.

Cohen said one of his "biggest regrets" was lying to Trump's wife Melania, at the President's request, to deny that Trump cheated on her.

"I respect her greatly – and she did not deserve that," Cohen said.

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During the hearings, Cohen said that authorities in New York were currently investigating previously undisclosed wrongdoing related to Trump, suggesting that the President could face more legal headaches in the near future.

A poster on display during Michael Cohen's testimony to Congress.Credit:Bloomberg

But in good news for Trump, Cohen said he had no direct evidence that Trump or his campaign had colluded with Russia during the 2016 election.

Cohen, who served as Trump's fixer and confidant for more than a decade, has been sentenced to three years in prison after admitting to committing campaign finance violations and lying to Congress about Trump's plans to build an enormous tower in Moscow.

I am ashamed because I know what Mr Trump is. He is a racist. He is a conman. He is a cheat."

Michael Cohen

Cohen said he was "mesmerised" by Trump and was lured into doing things that he knew were "absolutely wrong".

Cohen said he was "mesmerised" by Trump and was lured into doing things he knew were "absolutely wrong".Credit:AP

"I am ashamed that I chose to take part in concealing Mr Trump’s illicit acts rather than listening to my own conscience," Cohen said in an opening statement to the committee.

"I am ashamed because I know what Mr Trump is. He is a racist. He is a conman. He is a cheat."

Cohen said that Trump had asked him, during Barack Obama's presidency, to name a country run by a black person that wasn't a "shithole". He said that African Americans would not vote for him because they were "too stupid".

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Republican members of the committee slammed Cohen as a "scorned man", a "disgraced lawyer" and a "pathological liar" whose testimony could not be believed because of his past lies to Congress.

Aware of his dubious credibility, Cohen brought copies of cheques, financial statements and letters with him to buttress his testimony.

According to Cohen, Trump's long-time adviser Roger Stone told Trump in July 2016 that he had spoken to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and that the site would soon publish hacked emails that would damage Clinton's campaign.

"Wouldn't that be great," Trump replied, according to Cohen.

Soon after the conversation, WikiLeaks published a trove of hacked emails that embarrassed Clinton's campaign and forced the resignation of the Democratic National Committee chairwoman.

Roger Stone, former adviser to Donald Trump, had informed Trump of his contact with WikiLeaks, Cohen said.Credit:Bloomberg

The report prompted a rare denial by special counsel Robert Mueller's office.

"Mr Trump did not directly tell me to lie to Congress," Cohen said. "That’s not how he operates."

Cohen did say that Trump had implicitly directed him to lie about plans to build a Trump Tower in Moscow by saying privately that he had no business interests in Russia despite both men knowing that was untrue.

He added: "Questions have been raised about whether I know of direct evidence that Mr Trump or his campaign colluded with Russia. I do not."

During questioning, Democratic congresswoman Raja Krishnamoorthi asked Cohen: "Is there any other wrongdoing or illegal act that you are aware of regarding Donald Trump that we haven’t yet discussed today?"

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"Yes," Cohen responded. "And again, those are part of the investigation that’s currently being looked at by the Southern District of New York."

He did not elaborate on what the alleged wrongdoing involved.

Reflecting on Trump's character, Cohen said that the President did not expect to win the Republican primary or the general election in 2016 and only ran for office to increase his profile.

"He had no desire or intention to lead this nation – only to market himself and to build his wealth and power," Cohen said.

"Mr Trump would often say, this campaign was going to be the 'greatest infomercial in political history'."

Trump had become "the worst version of himself" since becoming president, Cohen said.

Among the documents Cohen presented were cheques signed by Trump reimbursing him for hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels to stop her going public about an affair with Trump.

Although Trump once demanded Obama release his test scores, Cohen said Trump also directed him to threaten his high school and colleges with civil action if they released his grades or standardised test scores without Trump's permission.